A Tribute & Appreciation for David Crosby: 1941 - 2023

APPRECIATION: The Contrasts of David CrosbyMember of revered Woodstock-era rock trio sang like a cherub, but his life wasn't all peace and love
 (Click photo to enlarge)  "David Crosby, pictured in 2019, sang delicate harmonies while living a reckless life, making him one of the Woodstock generation's most important and paradoxical figures."by Chris Richards, Washington Post - January 21, 2023

 

The tributes and appreciation for David Crosby, who passed on Thursday at age 81, continue to flow in from around the EARTH.

From the Washington Post's APPRECIATION: The Contrasts of David Crosby by Chris Richards:

As an irritable bon vivant who mainlined jazz and cocaine to sing lullabies like a cherub in a Tiepolo painting, David Crosby made no sense. He sang supremely delicate harmonies while living a reckless life, his hedonism, skepticism, tenderness and arrogance eventually coalescing into a shoulder shrug of self awareness. On the first page of his 1988 memoir, Crosby wrote, "I know I have an ego -- opinions differ as to its health, size, and value."

Crosby was of the Age of Aquarius but not starry-eyed

by Chris Richards, Washington Post - January 21, 2023

 

The Capitol Theatre @capitoltheatre

Earlier today, before getting ready for this weekend we took a moment to listen to some Croz. His Music will live forever. Rest In Peace, David Crosby. Thank you for the memories 

 

 

Brian Wilson

I don’t know what to say other than I’m heartbroken to hear about David Crosby. David was an unbelievable talent - such a great singer and songwriter. And a wonderful person. I just am at a loss for words. Love & Mercy to David’s family and friends. Love, Brian

 

A lovely voice and a lovely human being. Sincerest thanks to David Crosby for his kindness and for singing so beautifully to us all. -The Avett Brothers

 

#RingoStarr

God bless David Crosby and peace and love to all his family peace and love Ringo

Cameron Crowe

Robert Kennedy, Jr.

Tom Petty

Tom counted David Crosby as a friend and a hero. He visited often at his house in the valley. He was funny, provocative and electric with talent. His contribution to music will never be forgotten. Our thoughts and love to his family, bandmates and fans.

Neil Young on Crosby in Waging Heavy Peace 

 

 

James Taylor

"Missing you already, Croz. Love to Jan…" ~ James

Brian Jones and David Crosby, Monterey Pop Festival , 1967

 

Musician James Raymond pays tribute to birth father David Crosby

 

John Mayer shares how fans can “honor the memory” of rock legend David Crosby
 

 

The Carter Center @CarterCenter  @CarterLibrary

Sending our deepest condolences to the family of David Crosby. In this photo, President Carter meets with @thedavidcrosby @StillsStephen & Nash on 6/9/77. 

 

Photo by Henry Diltz 

Bob Dylan on David Crosby: "Crosby was a colorful and unpredictable character, wore a Mandrake the Magician cape, didn’t get along with too many people and had a beautiful voice — an architect of harmony. He could freak out a whole city block all by himself. I liked him a lot."  

Melissa Etheridge remembers David Crosby: "I am grieving the loss of my friend and Bailey’s biological father, David. He gave me the gift of family ... His music and legacy will inspire many generations to come. A true treasure."

rosanne cash@rosannecash

I can't begin to say how influential Crosby, Stills and Nash were for me. I'm grateful David Crosby lived, and so very sad he's gone.

Bruce Hornsby;

David Crosby was a friend for many years, always a warm and supportive fan with insightful comments about my work. So bright and so funny, he was always a joy to be around.

 

k.d. lang

On sept 12,2001 David Crosby offered me a ride on his tour bus from Denver to LA after the attacks on 911. Such a generous and kind soul. Swift auspicious rebirth to you brother. 

Stevie Van Zandt@StevieVanZandt

RIP David Crosby. As a member of The Byrds, 1 of the historically essential Artists that created the Artform of Rock. The Byrds, Bob Dylan, Beatles, Stones, Kinks, Who, Beach Boys & Yardbirds, showed future generations like us what was possible. We owe him, and them, everything.

 

Nils Lofgren @nilslofgren

Dear Croz, Rest in Peace and Song, old friend. Much Love and Healing to Jan and Django, from Nils and Amy

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Finally, here is a fan's heartfelt tribute to David Crosby. 

Thanks Davy.  We do understand and get it.  And so do lots of others.  We grieve together over the loss and celebrate the music...because music is love

More on David Crosby @

• David Crosby: 1941 - 2023 w/ statements by Nash, Stills & Young + Fan's reaction to the news 
• "The American Beatles": Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
• INTERVIEW: David Crosby - 'Serve The Song,' Not The Self
• "The American Beatles": Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
  
• PODCAST: David Crosby Talks Neil Young & More | ‘Freak Flag Flying’
• David Crosby: Uncut, Never-Before-Seen Interview | " Inventing David Geffen" | PBS | American Masters
• David Crosby Talks “Ohio”, CSNY and Creativity 
• Photo of the Moment: Jerry Garcia, David Crosby, Phil Lesh and Neil Young - 1970  
• Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young: Looking Back Through The Years 
  
• Crosby, Stills & Nash Perform at the National Christmas Tree Lighting
• FLASHBACK: The Actual Honest to God Reunion of Crosby Stills & Nash 
  
• David Crosby Talks Neil Young, Marijuana, And His Stunning New Album ‘Sky Trails’  
• PODCAST: 'Deja Vu' by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young - Thrasher's Wheat Radio 
  
• 2015 Interview with David Crosby | 4WaySite.com
• The Oral History of CSNY's Infamous 1974 'Doom Tour' | Rolling Stone  
• PHOTO: CSNY Backstage 1974 
  
• Photo of the Moment: Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - Bridge School Benefit - 10.26.13
  
• CONCERT REVIEW: Crosby, Stills & Nash: Wolf Trap, Vienna, VA - August 13, 2005 
• VIDEO: "Cowboy Movie" (instrumental) w/ Neil Young and PERRO (1971)  
  
• David Crosby and The Damage Done (or Not...) + Crosby on JFK Assassination @ 1967 Monterey Pop Festival of The Byrds
• Neil Young & David Crosby and their tangled relationship. 

 

"They are one person

 They are two alone 

They are three together 

They are for/4 each other" 

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - 2006
(Click photo to enlarge) 

David Crosby Tribute - NBC Nightly News 

 Although we cut our hair, David ... We'll Remember His Name ... definitely

“However much time I got isn’t really the significant thing — it’s what I do with that time, right? And it looks to me that the only contribution I can make, the place where I can help, is to make more music.”  

 - David Crosby in 2021 

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David Crosby: 1941 - 2023

David Crosby: 1941 - 2023
Photo by Francesco Lucarelli

 

David Crosby died today at the age of 81.

Crosby was a founding member of the bands Byrds and Crosby, Stills & Nash & Young. 

Graham Nash issued the following statement:

“It is with a deep and profound sadness that I learned that my friend David Crosby has passed. 

I know people tend to focus on how volatile our relationship has been at times, but what has always mattered to David and me more than anything was the pure joy of the music we created together, the sound we discovered with one another, and the deep friendship we shared over all these many long years.

David was fearless in life and in music. He leaves behind a tremendous void as far as sheer personality and talent in this world. He spoke his mind, his heart, and his passion through his beautiful music and leaves an incredible legacy. These are the things that matter most.

My heart is truly with his wife, Jan, his son, Django, and all of the people he has touched in this world.” 

David Crosby - May 14, 2012

Inventing David Geffen |  PBS | American Masters

 

Crosby's wife Jan issued the following statement:

"It is with great sadness after a long illness, that our beloved David (Croz) Crosby has passed away.

He was lovingly surrounded by his wife and soulmate Jan and son Django. Although he is no longer here with us, his humanity and kind soul will continue to guide and inspire us. His legacy will continue to live on through his legendary music.

Peace, love, and harmony to all who knew David and those he touched. We will miss him dearly. At this time, we respectfully and kindly ask for privacy as we grieve and try to deal with our profound loss. 

Thank you for the love and prayers."

Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Youngw/ Dallas Taylor & Greg Reeves - Aug. 1969photo by Henry-Diltz(Click photo to enlarge)

 

From Stephen Stills Official:

Crosby, Stills & Nash at the Royal Albert Hall
Saturday 3rd July, 2010
Photo by (C) Cyril Kieldsen

From Stephen: 

"I read a quote in this morning’s paper attributed to composer Gustav Mahler that stopped me for a moment: 'Death has, on placid cat’s paws, entered the room.' I shoulda known something was up. 1/3 

 

David and I butted heads a lot over time, but they were mostly glancing blows, yet still left us numb skulls. I was happy to be at peace with him. 2/3

 

He was without question a giant of a musician, and his harmonic sensibilities were nothing short of genius. The glue that held us together as our vocals soared, like Icarus, towards the sun. I am deeply saddened at his passing and shall miss him beyond measure.” 3/3

Neil Young & David Crosby 

(see  David Crosby Apologizes to Neil Young )

From Neil Young Archives | Times-Contrarian:

1-20-23

David is gone, but his music lives on.

The soul of CSNY, David’s voice and energy were at the heart of our band. His great songs stood for what we believed in and it was always fun and exciting when we got to play together. ‘Almost Cut My Hair’ ‘Dejavu’, and so many other great songs he wrote were wonderful to jam on and Stills and I had a blast as he kept us going on and on. His singing with Graham was so memorable, their duo spot a highlight of so many of our shows.

We had so many great times, especially in the early years. Crosby was a very supportive friend in my early life, as we bit off big pieces of our experience together. David was the catalyst of many things.

My heart goes out to Jan and Django, his wife and son. Lots of love to you. Thanks David for your spirit and songs, Love you man. I remember the best times!

neil

 

 

From INTERVIEW: David Crosby - 'Serve The Song,' Not The Self:

"If I have songs, then I want to be recording them. 

It's not as if I sit there with the songs and say, 'This is a Crosby, Stills & Nash song,' or 'I gotta save this until I can work on it with Neil,' or 'I'm saving this for myself; this is too good for those guys' — I do what comes naturally," Crosby says.

"Our job, really, is to serve the song," he adds. "That's really what making records is about. You have to really write a real song that you can sit down and play for somebody and make them feel something. If you don't have that, you shouldn't bother."

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - 1969
(Click photo to enlarge) 

From PODCAST: David Crosby Talks Neil Young & More | ‘Freak Flag Flying’,  Crosby discusses reuniting with Neil Young, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash:

David Crosby: “I don’t think it’s going to happen,” Crosby responds.

“The thing to do is be grateful for what there was. There was a period of time there when we really did make some very good music together and I’m grateful for it. I think everybody has to deal with their life as it coms to them and if those guys are stuck where they are, they’re stuck where they are. I’m trying real hard not to be.”

 

Graham Nash & David Crosby
#OccupyWallStreet in NYC
“Military Madness is Killing Our Country"
Nov 8, 2011
Photo by Sandi Bachom 

Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit + David Crosby

David Crosby Talks “Ohio”, CSNY and Creativity 

(Crosby's last concert performance)

 

David Crosby and Neil Young - Music Scene - 1969
Photo by Jeff Allen | InstaGram

 

David Crosby, Graham Nash, Neil Young and Stephen Stills
Oakland Coliseum, July 14, 1974
Photo by David Zimmer
(Click photo to enlarge)

 

Jerry Garcia, David Crosby, Phil Lesh and Neil Young
Photo by Jim Marshall
(See Photo of the Moment)

 

David Crosby, Stephen Stills and Graham Nash

Crosby, Stills & Nash Perform at the National Christmas Tree Lighting
(WTOP/Jason Fraley)

 

DEVELOPING 

More on David Crosby @

• INTERVIEW: David Crosby - 'Serve The Song,' Not The Self
• "The American Beatles": Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
  
• PODCAST: David Crosby Talks Neil Young & More | ‘Freak Flag Flying’
• David Crosby: Uncut, Never-Before-Seen Interview | " Inventing David Geffen" | PBS | American Masters
• David Crosby Talks “Ohio”, CSNY and Creativity 
• Photo of the Moment: Jerry Garcia, David Crosby, Phil Lesh and Neil Young - 1970  
• Crosby, Stills & Nash Perform at the National Christmas Tree Lighting
• David Crosby Talks Neil Young, Marijuana, And His Stunning New Album ‘Sky Trails’  
• 2015 Interview with David Crosby | 4WaySite.com
• CONCERT REVIEW: Crosby, Stills & Nash: Wolf Trap, Vienna, VA - August 13, 2005 
  
• Neil Young & David Crosby and their tangled relationship. 

 

"They are one person

 They are two alone 

They are three together 

They are for/4 each other" 

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - 2006
(Click photo to enlarge) 

David Crosby Tribute - NBC Nightly News

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INTERVIEW: Stephen Stills on Crosby, Nash & Young - 1991

Stephen Stills on "Later with Bob Costas" - 1991

 

Here is a Stephen Stills interview on the October 29th and 30th, 1991 episodes of "Later with Bob Costas".

Stills discusses the CSN boxset compiled by Graham Nash, and his solo album STILLS ALONE (which featured Hollis Brown by Bob Dylan who Stills talks about), Stephen addresses the Buffalo Springfield (including Neil Young's departure), as well as, Crosby Stills Nash, and Young.

  

In particular, note Stephen's comments on Neil Young @ ~05:00:

"Neil never played team sports. That’s why he would work on different solo projects & wouldn’t commit to touring with CSN."

Now we did some fact checking on that because we had always heard that Neil played hockey in his youth. While Neil did play hockey, it seems that he never played on an organized team. 

More on Stephen Stills and  Crosby,  Nash, & Young.

Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - 2006
(Click photo to enlarge)

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VIDEO: Buffalo Springfield Scene on Mannix TV Episode - 1967

Buffalo Springfield Scene on Mannix TV Episode - 1967

Recently, Neil Young talked to Conan O’Brien about his best and worst TV appearances.

Neil was pretty definitive that The Johnny Cash Show in 1971 was his worst because of his nervousness. OTOH, Neil considered Buffalo Springfield on Mannix in 1967 to be one his best. 

Here's a scene from the Mannix TV episode aired on October 28, 1967 with Buffalo Springfield.

The Mannix TV episode is titled "Warning: Live Blueberries" features Buffalo Springfield in a nightclub performing Stephen Stills song "Bluebird".

Definitely has that '60's feel with Sunset Strip's Whisky Go-Go vibe. 

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Stephen Stills was asked if he ever regrets not taping some of their concerts, he mentions this Mannix episode:  

"Yeah. The best sound we ever got was when we did this stupid TV show [Mannix, Oct 1967] where we played just a little bit of a song and we were like, 'Oh, my God, that's the sound we've been looking for'.

It was the only place we could get that sound right."

More on Neil Young Talks to Conan O’Brien About His Best, Worst TV Appearances.

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Rare, Unreleased Outtake: Neil Young's "Your Love Again" - 1985

International Harvesters '85 Tour(L-R: (top) Joe Allen, Rufus Thibodeaux, NY, Hargus "Pig" Robbins, Karl Himmel; (bottom) Anthony Crawford, Ben Keith)photo by Tom Sheehan
 (Click photo to enlarge) 

From Neil Young Unreleased's Tip Of The Month here is a Neil Young 1985 studio outtake with the International Harvesters of "Your Love Again".

This was a song recorded during Neil Young's Old Ways 2 sessions in 1985.

Neil Young & The International Harvesters 

 For more on Neil Young with the International Harvesters, see:

• INTERVIEW: Hargus "Pig" Robbins - Touring w/ Neil Young and the International Harvesters, Recording w/ Bob Dylan 
• Meta Review: A Treasure - Neil Young & The International Harvesters
• The Making of A Treasure: Interviews with Neil Young Neil Young Unearths 'A Treasure' -- Video & Interview
• A Treasure: New Neil Young Album Coming
• Release Details on A Treasure: New Neil Young Album Coming June 14
• Neil Young Discusses The International Harvesters and "A Treasure" Release
• Tech Notes on The Making of A Treasure
• Album Review of the Moment: "Neil's uber-country phase" - A Treasure
• A Treasure: Are You Ready To Get Back To The International Harvesters?
• Exclusive Preview Video of Neil Young's New Album "A Treasure"

A Treasure
Neil Young & The International Harvesters 

Neil Young

International Harvesters Tour, Costa Mesa, CA - 10/24/84 

Photo by Robert Matheu

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Comment of the Moment: RARE PHOTO: Paul & Linda McCartney w/ Neil Young by Gijsbert Hanekroot

 

Photo of Neil Young by Linda Eastman McCartney - 1968 

NYA Performance Series: Sugar Mountain - Live At Canterbury House

  (Click photo to enlarge)

 

The recent posts on  RARE PHOTO: Paul & Linda McCartney w/ Neil Young - Rotterdam 1976 and The Story Behind The Photographer: Paul & Linda McCartney with Neil Young by Gijsbert Hanekroot, elicited quite a flurry of comments on all sorts of subjects including the relationships between Neil Young, Linda Eastman McCartney, Paul McCartney and their daughter Stella McCartney.

The Thrasher's Wheat Comment of the Moment from  RARE PHOTO: Paul & Linda McCartney w/ Neil Young - Rotterdam 1976 by Ron:

Ah Thrasher you are stirring some memories for me with this Rare photo of Neil with Paul and Linda. 

Looks like Ralph and Poncho too - can't see Billy. Less than 10 days later I attended the Neil and Crazy Horse show in Glasgow, and six months previously I had seen Paul and Linda on the Wings tour in Dundee. I have commented on the 76 Glasgow show before, and it remains my all time favourite concert experience, but the Wings show was a great experience too. They played quite a few Beatles songs too as well as the Wings material. The crowd all surged to the front at some point and I remember standing and swaying on seats just a few rows back from the stage as the encores were played. Great memories.

A couple of years back I attended the Linda McCartney Retrospective exhibition and really enjoyed it. She certainly mixed with a lot of 60s/70s musicians and there are some great shots of them including Neil. There were also a lot of family shots of her with Paul and their kids where you see them just living normally and having fun. 

I see from her website that the exhibition is going to be in Tucson from February - if anyone is in the area I'd recommend checking it out.

Thanks for Comment of the Moment Ron.

And thanks for steering the conversation back to the subject at hand: the very long running relationships between Neil Young, Linda Eastman McCartney, Paul McCartney and their daughter Stella McCartney and its deep significance -- musically and otherwise.

More on RARE PHOTO: Paul & Linda McCartney w/ Neil Young - Rotterdam 1976 and The Story Behind The Photographer: Paul & Linda McCartney with Neil Young by Gijsbert Hanekroot.

Just another "A Day in the Life"...Paul McCartney and Neil Young (w/ Ben Keith & Rick Rosas)
Hyde Park, London, UK - June 27, 2009
Photo by Lzbth Corinthians (via Bernie B. Shakey)
(see more on Paul McCartney & Neil Young )

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